NASA MODIS Image of the Day: December 7, 2007 – Iraq Dust Storm

Dust plumes hovered over Iraq on December 3, 2007.
The MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite took this picture the same day.
In this image, the dust appears as translucent billows of beige that partially obscure the land surface below. Immediately northeast of the dust plumes are clouds, which may be associated with the same weather system that stirred the dust storm. The countries that surround Iraq are Iran (top right corner under the clouds), Syria (top left cornder), and Saudi Arabia (lower left corner). The black lines denote country borders. Iraq is in the center of the image. Just west of the dust are two lakes that look like blackish green shapes. The upper one is Lake Tharthar, the middle one is Lake Habbaniyah, and the lower one is Lake Razzaza. Baghdad is directly east of this middle lake. It appears as a gray patch, right on the Tigris river.